Rotator cuff arthropathy: what functional results can be expected from reverse arthroplasty?

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the functional results from reverse arthroplasty and its complications and relationships with types of injury.

METHODS: Twenty-seven shoulders (26 women and one man) were treated. The patients were assessed using the UCLA functional scale. The implant used was the Delta Xtend Depuy(®) model. The injuries were classified using the Seebauer method for the degree of arthroplasty and the Nerot method for notching.

RESULT: The mean age was 77.4 years (range: 67-89) and the follow-up was 25.8 months (range: 6-51). The preoperative UCLA score was 10.1 (range: 6-15) and the postoperative UCLA score was 29.8 (range: 22-35), which was a statistically significant improvement (p < 0.001). According to the Seebauer classification, five patients were 1B, 19 were 2A and three were 2B. Fifteen cases presented complications (55.5%) and notching was the commonest of these, occurring in 14 patients (nine with grade 1 and five with grade 2), but this did not cause instability in any of them. Only one patient (3.7%) had a major complication, consisting of dislocation in the immediate postoperative period. Two patients (7.4%) said that they would undergo the procedure again. One patient (3.7%) underwent a revision procedure.

CONCLUSION: Reverse arthroplasty was shown to be an excellent option for treating patients with rotator cuff arthropathy, with a low rate of major complications. Notching was a frequent complication, but in the majority of the cases, it did not present clinical repercussions.